Hollandaise Sauce Recipe

I kept meaning to re-post this recipe for Hollandaise Sauce. Because we had a revamp of our blog, there was a chance some of my recipes would disappear, so I wanted to re-write them up. As this is a classic Hollandaise Sauce recipe, I thought it an important one to keep in the blog’s recipe file. Taken from Michel Roux Senior’s book (see below), Hollandaise Sauce goes brilliantly with fish dishes, with Asparagus and other vegetables and is the mainstay of the classic ‘posh’ Breakfast or Brunch dish, Eggs Benedict. So here it is, for posterity.

Hollandaise Sauce

sharingourfoodadventures.comRecipe for Hollandaise Sauce

This recipe for Hollandaise Sauce is taken from the cookbook that I rely on when I want to cook classic sauce recipes. It is by the brilliant Michel Roux (Senior), entitled “Sauces”. In Michel’s words : “Hollandaise Sauce is one of the great classics and many other sauces derive from it. It is light, smooth and delicate and does not like to be kept waiting; if you cannot serve it immediately, keep it covered in a warm place.”

Recipe Hollandaise Sauce - this is used for such as Eggs Benedict, or with a lot of fish dishes.
Obviously there are many sauce recipes in Michel Roux's "Sauces" book, but this one took my eye. Sauce Mousseline is a delicate sauce and perfect for serving with poached or steamed fish, or with asparagus. Michel adds some chopped truffle trimmings to the Hollandaise Sauce, and after he adds the Lemon Juice, he also adds a quantity of whipped cream to the mixture to serve immediately.
Sound absolutely gorgeous to me.

Ingredients

4 tbsp cold water

1 tbsp white wine vinegar

1 tsp white peppercorns, crushed

4 egg yolks

250g butter (freshly clarified) and cooled to tepid (use 310g unsalted butter to clarify and end up with the 250g)

Juice of 1/2 lemon

Salt

Method

To clarify the butter

"Clarified butter is used to cook meat over a high heat without blackening it. It is also used for emulsified sauces like Hallandaise and its derivatives, and for making brown roux. During the clarifying process the butter loses about 20% of its original weight

To make about 100g of clarified butter, start with 120g unsalted butter. Melt this over a very gentle heat and bring slowly to the boil. Skim off the froth from the surface. Carefully pour the liquid butter into the bowl, taking care not to include any of the milky sediment from the bottom of the pan. The clarified butter should be the colour of a light olive oil. This will keep in the fridge for several weeks."

Now the Hollandaise Sauce.

Combine the water, vinegar and crushed white peppercorns in a small, heavy-based stainless steel saucepan. Over low heat, reduce by one third, then leave to cool in a cold place.

When the liquid is cold, add the egg yolks and mix thoroughly with a small whisk. Set the saucepan over a very gentle heat and whisk continuously, make sure that the whisk comes into contact with the entire bottom surface of the pan. Keep whisking as you gently and progressively increase the heat; the sauce should emulsify very gradually, becoming smooth and creamy after 8-10 minutes. Using a thermometer, do not allow the temperature of the sauce to rise above 65 degrees C.

Take the saucepan off the heat and, whisking continuously, blend in the cooled clarified butter, a little at a time. Season the sauce with salt to taste.

Pass the sauce through a chinois (a fine-meshed conical sieve) and serve as soon as possible, stirring in the lemon juice at the last moment.

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About Us

We are Astrid and Erik, a couple who love living in East Yorkshire, Northern England. In the years we have been together we have shared a passion for food adventures. From simple home-spun recipes and the street food of obscure destinations to the haute cuisine of Michelin-starred dining. In this blog we want to share those adventures. We hope you will join usand share our enjoyment.